Section 10-B5902. DEFINITIONS

 

5902.1When used in this chapter, the following terms and phrases shall have the meanings ascribed:

 

"Act" means the Housing Act of 2002, effective April 19, 2002 (D.C. Law 14-144; D.C. Official Code §§ 47-857.01 et seq.).

 

"Affordable" means the calculation of rent levels made in accordance with the requirements of section 42 of the Internal Revenue Code. The methodology to determine affordable unit rent levels shall be calculated from annual HUD median income data by unit size and rent levels for each unit type (e.g., efficiencies, one bedrooms, two bedrooms) and shall be independent of the actual income or household size of the unit occupant. At the time of initial approval, a unit is affordable if the monthly rent is not more than 35% and not less than 20% of the occupant's and co-signer's monthly income.

 

"Area median income" means:

 

(a)For a household of four (4) persons, the area median income for a household of four (4) persons in the Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area as set forth in the periodic calculation provided by HUD as a direct calculation without taking into account any adjustments made by HUD for the programs it administers;

 

(b)For a household of three (3) persons, 90% of the area median income for a household of four (4) persons;

 

(c)For a household of two (2) persons, 80% of the area median income for a household of four (4) persons;

 

(d)For a household of one (1) person, 70% of the area median income for a household of four (4) persons; and

 

(e)For a household of more than four (4) persons, the area median income for a household of four (4) persons, increased by 10% of the area median income for a family of four (4) persons for each household member exceeding four (4) persons (e.g. the area median income for a household of six (6) shall be 120% of the income of the area median income for a family of four (4)).

 

"Caps" means upward limits or ceilings which cannot be exceeded, except by authorization of additional budgetary authority by the Council of the District of Columbia.

 

"Certificate of occupancy" means the certificate of occupancy which permits the use of all residential areas of the building.

 

"Certified by the project architect" means the architect has affixed his or her stamp to the document.

 

"Concrete construction" means building construction in which the principal material used in the construction of the building frame and floorplates is concrete. Concrete construction shall include projects in which at least fifty (50%) percent of the project is new concrete construction or the project is a substantial renovation of a concrete structure.

 

"DCRA" means the Director of the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs or designee.

 

"District" means the government of the District of Columbia.

 

"DMED" means the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development or designee.

 

"Eligible Area # 1" means:

 

(a)Real property within or abutting a street in the area known as Downtown, the original commercial area between the Capitol and the White House bounded generally by North Capitol Street on the east, Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. on the south, 15th Street, N.W. on the west and Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. on the north, and as designated on the District of Columbia Generalized Land Use Policies Map; and

 

(b)Real property with a street frontage in the area bounded by and including New Hampshire Avenue, N.W. to the west, Delaware Avenue, N.E. to the east, Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. to the south, and Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. and N.E. to the north, that is zoned C-4, C-5, or SP-1.

 

"Eligible Area # 2" means Housing Priority Area A, as described in subsection 1706.8 of Title 11 of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations (11 DCMR § 1706.8).

 

"Eligible Area # 3" means:

 

(a)Census tracts where the average rent for one-bedroom or two-bedroom apartments exceeds the fair market rent, as established by HUD for the purposes of the Section 8 housing program, by 20% or more, as a direct calculation without taking into account any adjustments made by HUD for the programs it administers; and

 

(b)Geographic areas in which it is unlikely that new or rehabilitated housing with rents of less than 120% of the fair market rent will be produced, as determined by DMED after an analysis of the economic conditions and development pressures in the geographic area; provided, that after such analysis DMED shall publish a list of such geographic areas in the D.C. Register.

 

"Eligible real property" means real property that:

 

(a)Is classified, in whole or in part, as Class 1 or Class 2 property under D.C. Official Code § 47-813(c-3), or would be so classified but for the operation of § 47-813(c-3)(4);

 

(b)Is improved by new structures or undergoes rehabilitation, as the term "rehabilitation" is defined in this chapter; and

 

(c)Has ten (10) or more units devoted to residential use.

 

"Extremely low-income household" means a household consisting of one (1) or more persons with a household income equal to 30% or less of the area median income, as set forth in the periodic calculation provided by HUD as a direct calculation without taking into account any adjustments made by HUD for the programs it administers.

 

"Final building permit" means the final building permit issued to the owner for the full scope of the project including mechanical, electrical, plumbing and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems and superstructure; provided, that permits for the installation of electrical, plumbing, and mechanical systems shall be allowed to follow after the final building permit is issued to the owner; in addition, revision permits shall be allowed to address customary deviations due to field and construction conditions.

 

"First level of concrete has been laid" means the foundation to grade permit has been issued, the pouring of concrete for the floor of the lowest level of the structure to be constructed (i.e., cellar, basement, sub-cellar, sub-basement, or similar level) has commenced and the concrete work testing reports have been submitted to DMED.

 

"Household income" means gains, profits, and income derived from salaries, wages, or compensation for personal services of whatever kind and in whatever form paid, including salaries, wages, and compensation paid by the United States to its officers and employees, or income derived from any trade or business or sales or dealings in property whether real or personal, including capital assets as defined in D.C. Official Code § 47-1801 et seq. growing out of the ownership or sale of or interest in such property; income from rent, royalties, interest, dividends, securities, or transactions of any trade or business carried on for gain or profit, or gains or profits and income derived from any source whatever, including but not limited to cash distributions from a business or investment entity in which the claimant has an interest, alimony, and separate maintenance payments (including amounts received under separate maintenance agreements), strike benefits, cash public assistance and relief (not including relief or credit granted under D.C. Official Code § 47-1806.06), sick pay, workmen's compensation, proceeds of life insurance policies, the gross amount of any pension or annuity (including railroad retirement benefits, veterans' disability pensions, or payment received under the federal Social Security Act), state or District of Columbia unemployment compensation laws, and nontaxable interest received from the United States, a state or any agency or instrumentality thereof. The word "income" does not include gifts from nongovernmental sources, food stamps, or food or other relief in kind supplied by a governmental agency.

 

"HUD" means the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.

 

"Low-income household" means a household consisting of one (1) or more individuals with a household income equal to, or less than, 80% of the area median income and greater than 50% of the area median income, as set forth in the periodic calculation provided by HUD as a direct calculation without taking into account any adjustments made by HUD for the programs it administers.

 

"Occupied" means units that are physically occupied by or made available to low-income, very-low income, or extremely low-income households as follows:

 

(i)for the first thirty (30) days, the owner shall offer the unit to a qualified tenant for the purpose of finding a qualified household and may market the unit to a non-profit housing organization for the purpose of assisting in finding a qualified household;

 

(ii)if the unit is not leased after the first thirty (30) days, then for the next thirty-five (35) days, the owner may offer the unit to a qualified household whose income is 5% greater than the applicable percentage of median income; and

 

(iii)if the unit is not leased after the first sixty (65) days, then the owner may thereafter offer the unit to a qualified household whose income is 10% greater than the applicable percentage of median income. In addition, for households whose lease is being renewed or extended after a twelve (12) month period of occupancy, "occupied" shall also mean a household whose household income does not exceed 140% of the applicable median income.

 

"OTR" means the Deputy Chief Financial Officer for Tax and Revenue or designee.

 

"Owner" means the property owner or person authorized by the owner.

 

"Rehabilitation" means the substantial renovation of a structure for housing for sale or rental which is not habitable for dwelling purposes because it is in substantial violation of the Housing Regulations (14 DCMR).

 

"Sixty (60) percent of area-median-income households" means such percentage (%) determined through a direct mathematical calculation based on the periodic calculation provided by HUD and shall not take into account any adjustments made by HUD for the purposes of the programs it administers.

 

"Total residential FAR square footage" means the total gross floor area of the project that is devoted to residential uses based on the plans and drawings submitted in conjunction with the building permit application. (The terms "gross floor area" and "residential uses" shall have the meanings set forth in 11 DCMR § 199.1 and 1799.1, respectively.)

 

"Units devoted to residential use" means (a) occupied units that were constructed, rehabilitated, or converted for residential use, or (b) unoccupied units that are in the process of being constructed, rehabilitated, converted, marketed, leased, or sold for residential use, in either event pursuant to a building permit for such residential use. The use of an eligible unit for a "home occupation," as such term is defined in the Zoning Regulations (DCMR, Title 11), shall not make a unit that is otherwise eligible ineligible. (The term "residential use" shall have the meaning set forth in 11 DCMR § 1799.1.)

 

"Very low-income household" means a household consisting of one (1) or more individuals with a household income less than 50% of the area median income, as set forth in the periodic calculation provided by HUD as a direct calculation without taking into account any adjustments made by HUD for the programs it administers.

 

source

Final Rulemaking published at 50 DCR 553 (January 17, 2003).